Damn you title IX -- goodbye male sports...

6 guys sports v. 12 girls teams... how is that fair???

JMU ENACTS PROPORTIONALITY PLAN TO COMPLY WITH TITLE IX

Press conference attendees Rose, Damico, Moorman, Rivers, Bourne (l to
r)
September 29, 2006

HARRISONBURG — James Madison University's Board of Visitors voted today
to approve a plan to bring the JMU Athletics program into compliance
with Title IX.

The plan will take effect July 1, 2007, when the following varsity
teams will be eliminated:

Men's
Archery
Cross Country
Gymnastics
Indoor Track
Outdoor Track
Swimming
Wrestling

Women's
Archery
Fencing
Gymnastics

With 28 varsity teams, the JMU Athletics program ties for the rank of
seventh in terms of the number of teams among all 327 Division I
schools nationally.

"The JMU Athletics program is unusually large for a public university
of our size," said Joseph Damico, rector of the JMU Board of Visitors.
"With so many teams, we faced an insurmountable challenge coming into
compliance with Title IX. Fundamentally, that is why the Board voted
today for this plan."

The proportionality requirements of Title IX mandate that collegiate
athletics programs mirror each school's undergraduate population in
terms of gender. As of the fall semester 2006, JMU's proportions place
it fundamentally out of compliance with federal law:

Overall Enrollment
Female 61%
Male 39%

Athletics Participation
Female 50.7%
Male 49.3%

Jeff Bourne, JMU athletics director, said, "We explored every avenue in
search of an alternative to this action. Lamar Daniel, a well-known
consultant on Title IX compliance, has worked closely with us and he
believes that this plan is our most viable alternative for reaching
compliance with Title IX."

Once this plan is fully implemented, total participation in athletics
will move to 61 percent female and 39 percent male, in alignment with
current student enrollment. The university will then have 18
intercollegiate sports:

Men's
Baseball
Basketball
Football
Golf
Soccer
Tennis

Women's
Basketball
Cross Country
Field Hockey
Golf
Lacrosse
Soccer
Softball
Swimming
Tennis
Track, Indoor
Track, Outdoor
Volleyball

This decision affects 144 student-athletes currently participating in
these sports, as well as three full-time and eight part-time coaches.

"Now that the Board has voted to enact this plan, our main concern is
with our affected student-athletes and coaches," said Bourne. "We are
taking great care to preserve the financial guarantees already made to
our student-athletes. If you are a student-athlete on an affected team
and you are receiving a scholarship, you will continue to receive that
scholarship until you graduate."

Currently, eight students on the rosters of the 10 affected teams
receive a total of $13,500 in scholarships. Access to sports-medicine
and academic-advising programs also will be available to them. Any
affected student-athletes who decide to transfer to another program
will be provided with full assistance regarding the transfer process.
Affected coaches will receive severance packages appropriate to the
university's policies and procedures.

All of the financial resources recovered from the implementation of
this plan will be redirected to provide the full complement of NCAA
scholarships for women's golf, tennis and swimming. Partial scholarship
funding will return to men's golf and tennis, with a plan to enhance to
full funding by 2011.

To view online the press conference held Friday afternoon to announce
the plan, go to http://media.jmu.edu/special/8_924.asx. Attending are
JMU President Linwood Rose, Board of Visitors Rector Joseph Damico,
Associate Athletic Director Sheila Moorman, BOV member Wharton Rivers
Jr., and Athletic Director Jeff Bourne.